Contents

Page 1 Middle Sixth Interviews

Page 2 Trip to Vietnam

Page 3 Modern Foreign Languages

Page 4 A2 English Trip to Stratford-upon-AvonModel United Nations Conference

Page 5 Visit to OxfordThe School Shop

Page 6 Girls’ SportPage 7 Girls’ SportPage 8 Boys’ SportPage 9 Boys’ SportPage 10 Boys’ Sport

Visit of David AubornPage 11 The Annual Eren Pars Football Match

School Choir Brings Festive Cheer To Dream Factory Children Page 12 RemembrancePage 13 DramaPage 14 Friends of Chigwell –

A message from Purnima Sen (Chair of FoC)Page 15 Les Misérables

Page 16 French PlayEpping Forest Debating Competition

Staff News

Bad Weather

Page 17 Read to Feed

Page 18 Evensong at Westminster AbbeyHigher and Extended Project Qualification Projects

Page 19 Junior School ConcertPage 20 Reminder - Start of TermPage 21 Chapel

Middle SixthInterviewsChigwell hosted mock interviews for

Middle Sixth students recently. Over

thirty parents, Old Chigwellians and

friends carried out the interviews and

every effort was made to ensure that

they were as realistic as possible. The

feedback from all concerned was very

positive. The following week we were

joined by students from Beal School for

the second year of mock medical

interviews. Beal and Chigwell staff, and

O.C.s with medical backgrounds spent a

busy evening interviewing medical

applicants from both schools. Again both

interviewers and interviewees very much

enjoyed the process and took a great deal

away from the event. Mr Andrew Long,

Head of Sixth Form, has asked me to pass

on his thanks to all those who helped by

acting as interviewers.

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Trip to VietnamA number of Lower Sixth students,

together with Reverend Simon Paul and

Mr and Mrs Boughton, spent part of half

term travelling through Vietnam on a

history tour to widen their understanding

of the country.

In Hanoi they visited the “Hanoi Hilton”,

where American airmen who were shot

down during bombing raids, were held in

a former French prison. The students

experienced Hue, the ancient capital of

Vietnam, the 17th Parallel, the border

between North and South Vietnam, and

the Vinh Moc Tunnels where a whole

village lived underground to escape the

bombing. They also experienced the

wonders of Halong Bay and they travelled

to Hoi An, stopping at American machine

gun posts and then on to Ho Chi Minh

City. Here they travelled to the

spectacular Mekong Delta where they

journeyed by boat up the river for lunch

and a visit to a local market. The final visit

was to the War Remnants Museum. The

pupils learnt that Vietnam is a stunningly

beautiful country, the people are warm

and welcoming, the culture is rich and

varied, and the country is changing and

developing rapidly.

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Modern ForeignLanguagesIt has been a very busy term in the

modern languages department. In the

first week of half term, the Lower Fifth

and Upper Fifth hispanists visited sunny

Benalmádena on a tuition homestay trip.

There has also been a trip to the

European Parliament’s London offices

with the Upper Fifth and Middle Sixth

modern linguists for a talk and activities

about the role of modern languages in

the organisation’s work. And finally, this

year’s Mandarin clubs started in

November, for Lower One and Upper

One and the Lower Sixth, on Thursday

afternoons.

A2 English Trip toStratford-upon-AvonFourteen Middle Sixth English students

travelled by train to Stratford-Upon-Avon

to see John Webster’s “The White Devil”,

an A2 set text, at the RSC Swan Theatre.

For the examination, students have to

compare this dark and bloody Jacobean

revenge tragedy with Milton’s Paradise

Lost, and the production certainly

conveyed the fallen world of the Italian

court. In modern dress and with a

decidedly feminist agenda, they watched

the story of Vittoria Corombona’s

adultery and subsequent death, acted out

in a world spinning out of control. The last

laugh was, literally, given to the chilling

child-prince, all set to take over the

throne; he prodded the corpses on

stagewith his foot, leaving the audience

thinking that things could only really get

worse. Organised by Ms Sarah Bell, the

trip was most successful with the

performance being both lively and

provocative. As well as being able to soak

up the ambience of Shakespeare’s

birthplace, students will be so much

better prepared to be able to write about

the play in the final exams.

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Model United Nations Conference Eight Chigwell students from the Upper Fifth and above attended the annual Model

United Nations Conference at Benenden School recently. The two School delegations

represented Iran and Luxembourg, and our students were with over two hundred others

from a wide variety of schools. The conference is a role-playing exercise that simulates

the day-to-day work of the UN.

5

Visit to Oxford A group of Upper Fifth GCSE German

pupils visited Oxford recently. They

started with a tour of St. John's College

with two current Oxford students and in

the afternoon they were invited to visit

the exhibition 'Germans in Britain', which

gives an overview of German migrants in

the UK and their contribution to British

society. Our pupils then had a chance

to discuss the issue of migration with

two professors from Oxford University

before watching a film about the

'Kindertransport', trains evacuating

German and Austrian Jews in the build-up

to WW2. The film was introduced by the

producer himself, whose father was on

one of these trains. The main theme of

the afternoon was the question of

identity and how far this is an issue for all

migrants in our globalised world.

The School ShopThe School Shop will close on

Wednesday 17th December and re-open

on Monday 5th January 2015.

From Monday 5th January to Wednesday

7th January the shop will be open from

10am to 3pm, and thereafter the normal

opening hours will be 12 noon to 5pm.

Girls’ SportChigwell girls have enjoyed one of their

most successful seasons of hockey. The

1st XI achieved their best ever finish at

the U18 Essex tournament, only losing

out to Coopers, when they conceded a

single goal in the last thirty seconds of

the match. Following this, confidence

in the squad was high and the girls went

on to beat Bancroft’s, Brentwood and

St Edmund’s, they drew against Forest,

and have only lost one match since the

October break, which was against Mill

Hill. Notable performances have come

from keeper Hannah Leiper, Captain

Georgia O’Connor and midfielders Alice

Melvin and Megan Wells. We also must

congratulate Hannah, Alice and Megan

on their continued involvement with

their respective age groups of Tier 1

JRPC. The 1st XI finished off their

season with the annual match against

the staff team, when the result was a

respectable 2-2 draw, pleasing for all

those involved!

The 2nd XI girls finished the season on a

high with a win against Forest. They

have made significant progress and

therefore it was great to finish the

season with a victory.

The U14As have been undefeated all

season, winning eight out of nine

matches and a 2-2 draw. The girls have

notched up a staggering thirty-three

goals and only conceded five. The A

team has been regularly rotated with a

large squad playing every fixture. They

travelled to Bedford to represent Essex

at the East of England round. They

beat Kings Ely 2-1, Sutton Valence 2-0

and drew 1-1 with Bedford Girls’ School.

They faced Felsted in the final and lost

3-1 in a well-fought match. The girls

were disappointed not to have

progressed to the Nationals, but were

extremely pleased with their efforts

and achievement at such a prestigious

tournament. Many girls have alternated

between the U14 A and B sides which

has developed the standard of their

hockey. The B side had a number of

fixtures throughout the term and made

fantastic progress throughout the

season as a squad. Further hockey

honours outside of school go to Venetia

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Girls’ SportBailey, Charlotte James-Pajwani, Chloe

Stack, and Stevie Southall who have all

been selected for U14 JRPC Tier 1, and

Zoe Wright who has been selected for

the county side, U14 JAC.

In the Junior School, hockey continues to

go from strength to strength with both

the U13s and U12s doing very well at the

IAPS tournaments. The U13 squads have

always been a keen and enthusiastic

bunch of girls but have recently added an

element of strength and competitive

drive to their game too. They have had a

good run of results recently and we are

proud to have two girls involved with

county from this year group, Eleanor

Ahern (U13 JAC) and Kitty Howson (U13

JDC). At U12 level, the school regularly

had twenty or more girls turning out for

after-school training.

Boys’ SportThe second half of the football season

has continued to be very busy with large

numbers of boys involved. The 1st XI

played the Corinthian Casuals at the end

of half term and won 3-0. They then

continued in winning fashion after half

term by beating Highgate (3-0),

Kimbolton (2-1) and Aldenham (5-1)

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Boys’ Sportwhich meant they had won seven

games in a row, a feat which has not

occurred for a long time. Unfortunately,

a poor performance against Brentwood

followed and they were comfortably

beaten 3-0. Hampton are always one of

the strongest opponents and Chigwell

put in a credible performance losing

4-2 after being 1-0 up. The 1st XI then

hosted a team from Greenhouse, a

charity based in South London, which

aims to give opportunities to

disadvantaged youngsters through

football. It was a fantastic event which

saw Chigwell run out winners. However,

what was more important was the

social side, which saw the players

from very different backgrounds mixing

freely in the Dining Hall after the match.

The 1st XI finished the season with a

disappointing 1-0 loss to Forest, but

nonetheless this was a fantastic season.

The 2nd XI have again been competitive,

securing draws against Highgate and

Kimbolton, fine victories over Aldenham

and Forest and a narrow 3-2 defeat in the

last minute against Brentwood. The U16s

were knocked out of the ISFA Shield in

the second round after they were heavily

defeated by an impressive Harrodian

side. Senior House football was played in

a competitive nature with over eighty-

five boys representing their House.

The U15s have been much more

competitive this year. The U14A team

have continued to play some fine

football and were involved in an epic 4-4

draw with City of London which was

played in an excellent spirit by both

teams. They beat local rivals, Forest,

and also secured a 1-0 victory against a

very strong Hampton side. The U14B

team have been a credit to the School as

they have had a large number of boys

(and one girl) represent the School. They

have had some great games including

wins against City of London and

Kimbolton. House football saw every

boy in the Removes and Lower Fifth

represent their House and saw

Lambourne as victors. Alec Osborn, Jake

David and Tommy Redhead attended St

George’s Park in the last week of term to

represent the

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Boys’ SportIndependent Schools against academy

sides including Watford, Leicester City

and Derby County.

In the Junior School, the U13s have had

lots of football and are certainly making

improvements as a year group. Both teams

try to play the game in the right spirit as

opposed to focussing purely on the

outcome of matches. The vast majority of

Third Form boys represented the School

when we hosted Mossbourne Academy

from Hackney. The Third Form have been

attending training in droves and they are a

keen and enthusiastic year who will

continue to go from strength to strength.

At KS2, a large number of boys were

involved in Futsal matches at the

Copperbox arena with Woodford Green

Prep and Forest schools. Futsal is a game

which originates from Brazil and is played

with a heavier ball and thus focusses on

skill and technique. The Lower One and

Upper One boys have been exposed to a

number of Futsal sessions during their

games lessons and during the KS2

football club which as always is well

attended every week.

Visit of David AubornArtist David Auborn led a drawing

workshop as a part of the Art+

programme. During the session, the

pupils learned about different drawing

and painting materials, practical

approaches and conceptual strategies

connected to how a drawing may be

made. Ideas relating to abstraction and

also David’s own work were also

explored and the exhibition of David’s

work, ‘Micro and Macro’, which is

currently on show in the school gallery,

was a great inspiration too. It was a

thoroughly exciting and challenging

day and the pupils made some great

experimental work.

The annual Eren Pars football match was

played recently in memory of Eren O.C.

who passed away in May 2012, when he

was just twenty one. He was a keen

footballer and the match is played in his

memory each year between two Chigwell

Sixth Form teams. This year, the excited

crowd of pupils, staff, parents and friends

of Eren saw a closely fought game which

the Middle Sixth eventually won on

penalties. The Eren Pars trophy was

presented by Eren’s mother to the

winners. Mr and Mrs Pars made a

generous donation, £2,500 of which will go

to the Smiles with Grace Charity which

was the one chosen by the winning side.

Members of the Chapel Choir provided

festive music when children who have

received 'dreams' from The Dream Factory

charity were given an extra treat at an

early Christmas lunch at The King William

IV pub in Chigwell. The charity's founder,

Avril Mills commented that: "The Chigwell

School Choir were fabulous.”

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The Annual Eren Pars Football Match

School Choir Brings Festive Cheer To DreamFactory Children

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RemembranceThe School came together to remember

those who died in armed conflict. We do

this each year but as we marked the

anniversary of the start of the First World

War this year, the act of remembrance

was particularly important. As always, at

eleven o’clock on the 11th day of

November, the entire school community

observed two minutes’ silence. We

remembered all those who were killed in

the two World Wars as well as those who

continue to die, or indeed to survive with

physical and/or emotional injuries in the

cause of peace for others.

As you will know, our Chapel was built as

a memorial to those who were killed in

World War I and the names of those who

died in that and the 1939-45 conflict are

recorded on brass plates. In addition, our

School Archivist, Mrs Marian Delfgou,

has produced panels which tell the

stories of fourteen Old Chigwellians who

fought in World War I, most of whom

died but some who survived. Her

research has been carried out using

records in the archives, including letters

from these young men sent home from

the front.

This year, our traditional advent service

took a slightly different form, although

the contributions by the choir were of the

typically high standard. Through the

service were a mixture of readings,

focusing on the tragedy of war and the

lessons that we can learn. Thank you to

all of those who supported the occasion.

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DramaJust after half term, we hosted E15’s

Second Year Expressionism performances.

This was a double bill of truly

experimental, modern drama involving

dance, physical theatre, rap and live

music. All students taking GCSE and A

Level drama attended and thoroughly

enjoyed the shows. Following on from

this, the Middle Sixth performed their

two devised pieces based around the

themes of Desensitisation and Ethnic

Cleansing. These were two highly

inventive shows that mixed styles as

diverse as Berkoff, Artaud, Brecht and Le

Coq to make a striking double bill of

modern experimental theatre.

The Lamda Showcase at the end of

November dazzled us all with some

fantastically polished monologues and

duologues; particularly outstanding

were Tess Kelly and Venetia Bailey, and

Tom Lockley was awarded the prize for

Highest Lamda Mark 2014.

Finally, the Senior School Play, “The

School for Scandal”, was performed to

audiences who enjoyed the flamboyancy

of the 18th Century with wigs, frills and

snuff taking! This was a marvellously

staged traditional drama that

delightfully recreated an age of wit,

gossip and scandal.

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Friends of Chigwell –A message from PurnimaSen (Chair of FoC)With a fantastically successful Fireworks

Night on the 7th of November, a super

fayre, the school discos in December, the

Memphis show in Town, the drinks bar at

the School Play “School for Scandal”, it

has been an absolute whirlwind of a term

for the FoC. However, when I reflect on

what we have achieved, I am really proud

that the FoC team has worked so well

together. We have treated each and

every event as a learning curve. We have

run retrospectives at meetings and

drawn educated conclusions on what we

have got right and what we have not. For

example, we are constantly trying to

make the fireworks event better and

better, and this year having the food in

the Dining Room was a huge triumph and

so was the idea of setting up half of New

Hall with tables and chairs for people to

have a place to sit. Running two bars,

two bbq’s and multiple counters for

coffee and mulled wine, meant that we

never had long queues and people did

not have to wait for ages. I know this

seems sometimes like “just a PTA” but

we want to practise what we preach to

our children and that is to treat every job

with equal importance and no matter

how small or how insignificant it may be

– if it’s got to be done then it’s got to be

done well.

So, as I write this, we have still three

evenings left to serve drinks at the Les

Misérables musical evenings but already

we have made a total profit of about

£8,500 this term alone! We have, also,

this term donated about £600 towards

the Pre Prep outdoor drawing and picnic

tables, and now look forward to the

Headmaster’s recommendations of

where he would like the rest of the

money to be donated at the Junior and

Senior Schools, so watch this space.

As always, this year the support from all

parents attending the events, all the

teachers and the support and ground

staff has been overwhelming. My team

has been an absolute triumph and I could

not ask for a better group of people who

not only give up their time but make it all

look so much fun.

I would like to finish my 2014 update

with a big ‘Thank You’ to all involved

for helping us make the Friends of

Chigwell such a successful fund-raising

organisation. And to everyone as well – I

wish you all a very Merry Christmas and

an excellent New Year.

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Les MisérablesIn the last few days of term, the concert

production of Les Misérables, took to the

Chigwell School stage. More than

seventy pupils worked for a large part of

the term to produce stunning

performances in New Hall, superbly

decorated to transport the audiences

from 21st-century Essex to 19th-century

France. The performances included a

charity matinée to raise money for

Smiles with Grace, and each

performance had a unique cast in order

to offer several pupils the chance to take

the principal roles. Congratulations to

everyone who worked so hard to make

this an excellent production which will

undoubtedly be rememberd by all those

who saw it or indeed were part of it.

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French PlayThe Onatti Production Company visited Chigwell to perform their amusing two-hander

‘Erreur d’Identité’ in which the proprietors of a run-down country hotel receive an

unexpected guest and get more than they bargained for. The two principals played all

the parts with tremendous energy in a succession of garish wigs and costumes. Despite

the sophistication of some of the French, the twists and turns of the plot were

surprisingly and delightfully clear, supported as they were by vigorous mime and non-

verbal communication. Not a word of

English was spoken even by the two

audience participants! The play was

really well received by the children of

Years 7 and 8 and we hope to welcome

the company again in the future when

they will once again do their bit to

promote this beautiful language.

Epping Forest Debating CompetitionCongratulations to Tom Lockley and Angus Brown who gave a fantastic performance in

the recent Epping Forest Debating Competition.

Staff News As we reach the end of term, we say

farewell to two members of staff. Ms

Marcia Teichman is leaving us to take up

the post of Head of Chemistry at Bolton

Boys’ School and we wish her and her

family well in their new home. Ms Andrea

Gehrke is expecting her second baby in

the New Year and we send her our very

best wishes and look forward to hearing

news of the new arrival in due course.

Bad Weather As in previous years, in the event of

heavy snow or ice please consult the

school website (www.chigwell-school.org)

for confirmation of arrangements for the

school day. We would always be very

reluctant to close the School, but are

mindful of the safety of pupils and staff.

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Read to FeedPupils from right across the School have

taken part in Send a Cow’s sponsored

reading scheme ‘Read to Feed’. They

spent two weeks being sponsored to read

for pleasure in order to raise money to

provide cows and other farm animals to

help African families. Send a Cow lifts

families out of poverty for good by

teaching them how to produce food from

small plots of unproductive land and by

providing livestock. We have raised

£1,700 which will provide two cows,

goats and chickens; thank you to all

families who have helped us achieve this.

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The Chapel Choir led Evensong at

Westminster Abbey, which has the

highest gothic vault in England, and they

opened with the introit, O bone Jesu,

before embarking on the Rose Responses.

The coming together of the great Abbey

organ and the voices of the Choir in the

opening and resulting exclamations of

Stanford’s Magnificat in C and later in the

Anthem, Like as the Hart, by Herbert

Howells was unforgettable. Thank you to

all of those who supported the occasion.

Members of the Upper Fifth and Middle

Sixth recently presented their Higher

Project Qualification projects, and

Extended Project Qualification projects.

These qualifications, taken in addition to

GCSE or A level subjects, are designed to

broaden horizons beyond the confines of

the standard curriculum and encourage

independent research and thought. EPQ

and HPQ students undertake a research

topic of their choice and they develop

skills including the use of academic

journals, keeping an academic log, and

formal report writing.

HPQ projects included: Recent

Developments in the Treatment of

Parkinson’s Disease (Ben Sanders),

Women in Physics Professorships (Emma

Cadman), the Impact of the Illuminati on

Popular Music (Olivia Mendel Portnoy),

King Ludwig II of Bavaria: Mad or

Misunderstood? (Henry Bird), and the

Development and Use of Nail Varnish

Over the Last Century (Jada Coker).

Some of this year's EPQs included: The

Feasibility of Nuclear Fusion as a Power

Source in Space (Theo Gheorghiu), The

Evaluation of the Duckworth-Lewis

Method in Cricket (Hugo Blogg), and

Analysis of the 1945 Labour Government

(Margaret Oki).

Higher and Extended Project Qualification Projects

Evensong at Westminster Abbey

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Junior School ConcertThe Junior School Michaelmas Concert

was enjoyed by a packed audience of

parents and pupils and provided us with an

opportunity to ease gently into the festive

season. There was a performance of

‘Frosty the Snowman’ from the trumpet

group and a rousing finale from the Glee

Club with their performance of a

Christmas Medley, specially arranged by

Miss Laura Thomas. The quality of each

performance was impressive as each

soloist and ensemble took to the stage.

The audience enjoyed a rich and varied

programme which included works by

Telemann and Donizetti, Gershwin,

Sondheim and John Williams. Other

groups performing were the Cello Group,

Saxophone Group, Percussion Groups,

the Junior Orchestra and the Second Form

Boys’ and Girls’ Choirs. Well done to pupils

in the Junior School for a super evening.

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Reminder - Start of TermPlease note that because we end this term midweek and the Lent term starts for

pupils on Thursday 8th January, we will be starting with

week B when we return.

As all of the above suggests, many pupils have

had a very busy term and a large number will

be feeling tired. Whilst those facing public

exams in the summer will want to use some

of the holidays to carry out important

revision and consolidation, I hope all

pupils manage to have some rest and

relaxation too. I also wish you all

a very happy Christmas and I

look forward to seeing you

again in 2015.

With best wishes

Michael Punt

Chapel

Remembrance has been a central focus to this

second half of the Michaelmas Term. Our

Centenary Remembrance has focussed on the

eighty Chigwellians that were killed during the

First World War. One of those individuals was

Herr Sommermeier, a language teacher who

taught at Chigwell briefly in 1913. He fought

for Germany and was killed in 1914. He clearly

left his mark upon Chigwell as the school had a

day of mourning in memory of him. This death

helps us to reflect upon the tragedy of the First

World War and so many other conflicts. At the

start of Advent, on 1st December, we

remembered the moment when on Christmas

Day 1914 the fighting stopped and along the

Western Front soldiers emerged from the

trenches and greeted each other. It seems that

they agreed not to begin hostilities again until

the other side started to fire; this meant that

Boxing Day was also a day of peace.

The current generation of pupils and ex-pupils,

thankfully, do not face the call to join up and

fight a war; however, they do face challenges

and uncertainties. Technology has made the

world a smaller place and whilst we enjoy

peace and prosperity, large parts of our world

do not. Chapel has brought us the silence to

think about life, our responsibilities to each

other and to the world. We have thought

about our words and action and how they can

bring peace or conflict to those around us;

pupils, parents and staff have responded with

great generosity to our charity fundraising

appeals in aid of those in need; and, we have

had time to be still and put into perspective all

the demands upon our time and talents.

I wonder how the soldiers felt as they returned

to their own trenches at the end of that

Christmas Day in 1914. The day when 2000

years earlier a baby was born in Bethlehem.

The baby they remembered as they sang

across no man’s land the words of “Silent

Night or “Stille Nacht, heilige Nacht”. Perhaps

they prayed for peace, for a chance to be with

their families again, and that the world might

learn from this baby that love and peace are

the only things that really matter. It is our

privilege to enjoy and to work for the same

things in our own lives, in the lives of our loved

ones and in the world today.

May I wish you and your family love and peace

this Christmas.

Father Simon

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